Twenty weeks through the heart of AlaskaIt is a very remarkable fact that a region under a civilized government for more than a century should remain so completely unknown as the vast territory drained by the Copper, Tanana and Koyukuk Rivers. So wrote Henry Allen in a government report on his muscle-powered journey from the mouth of the Copper River to the mouth of the Yukon, from where he returned by steamship to the civilized 48. Pushing on when Nati...

Shell builders lose when the ocean acidifiesThere are not many schools in the Nation where kids in 6th grade learn about ocean acidification. In Kodiak the school district, teachers, and scientists agree that students should know about this important factor changing the chemistry of the ocean worldwide and how it may impact Alaska’s fisheries. This year, the Middle school changed their bell schedule. Now, every class is 45 minutes long and every student has...

Artist teaches metalworking at museumA dozen people learned metalworking while making a piece of jewelry at the Alutiiq Museum on Saturday. Jim Miller, an artist from Port Graham, which is close to the tip of Kenai Peninsula , taught the class. He’s taught woodworking before, but never metalworking. “I couldn’t resist a trip to Kodiak,” Miller said. “I wanted to let people just get some hands-on, get the feel of it if it’s something they like or if i...

1966: High Water Mark of the Kodiak King Crab FisheryEditor’s note: This is the second part of the series "From the Sea: True Stories of Kodiak's Maritime History.” The column appears every second Tuesday of the month. Driven by a generation of ambitious and energetic men, the Kodiak king crab fishery in the 1960s was booming. In 1965, in a 10-month season that ran from July 1 to May 1, Kodiak fishermen delivered 94 million pounds of crab worth $12 million — about e...

Kodiak spikers open against SouthKodiak drew a tough opening-round matchup, but a favorable time slot at the ASAA/First National Bank State Volleyball Championships. The Bears, the runner-up finisher in the Northern Lights Conference, opens Thursday’s state tournament at 1:15 p.m. — the final game of the opening round — against defending champion South Anchorage, winners of five state titles since 2005. The Wolverines took the strong Cook Inlet C...

Outdoor Kodiak: ’Tis the season for great eatsBy now, most outdoor enthusiasts have done a great job of stuffing their freezers. We have our work cut out for us, eating all that great fish and game between now and spring. If your family is new to such plenty, you’ll soon discover that the biggest challenge lies ahead. Using it all between now and the restart of fishing in spring. If you don’t have lots of preparations, and especially easy ones, then your fami...

Kodiak Island Births: Nov. 11Myer Reese Wattum was born at 4:18 a.m. on Oct. 31, to Jay William Wattum and Katie . Myer weighed 8 pounds, 10 ounces and was 20 inches long. Myer’s parents are originally from Kodiak and Belleville, Illinois, and now live in Kodiak. The baby’s mother and father are self-employed. Also welcoming Myer to the family is Andie Elizabeth Wattum. Grandparents are Barb and Joel Wattum from Palmer and Leslie and Dave Rak...

Alumni update: KHS stars collide in the poolA pair of Kodiak High School swimming stars collided in the pool Friday in Idaho. And for the second straight year it was Jori Lindquist’s Northern Arizona Wildcats topping Laura Griffing’s University of Idaho Vandals, 185-115. The two high school stars didn’t compete against each other in an individual, but they were pitted against each other in the 200-yard medley relay. Lindquist again came out on top, with her...

Borough begins meeting live streamThe Kodiak Island Borough tested the advantages of digital technology with a new video live stream at Thursday’s assembly meeting. It was a soft rollout, and there was a glitch. The stream lagged by about 30 seconds early in the meeting. Assembly member Carol Austerman, who had been watching the stream, observed near the end of the meeting that it lagged by two minutes. That might cause difficulties with people vi...